Kidd Kraddick to be inducted into radio hall of fame
The National Radio Hall of Fame announced inductees in several categories on Monday, and three of them have North Texas connections.
Kidd Kraddick, the long-running host of Kidd Kraddick in the Morning and the founder of the Kidd’s Kids charity, was one of four people inducted because of contributions to the industry. Kraddick, who died in 2013 at age 53, had been a fixture in DFW radio since 1984, when he came to North Texas to join KEGL/97.1 FM “The Eagle,” at the time a Top 40 station.
When the station changed formats in 1992, Kraddick, off the air but still under contract, asked to be released to accept an opportunity at the new KHKS/106.1 FM “KISS-FM.” There he developed the Kidd Kraddick in the Morning Show, which launched in 1993 and eventually became one of the top-rated shows in DFW. Kraddick’s castmastes Kelli Rasberry, Big Al Mack, Jose “J-Si” Chavez and Jenna Owens have continued with the show, now titled The Kidd Kraddick Morning Show and syndicated throughout the country.
But Kraddick was a student of radio whose devotion to the medium extended well beyond what he did on the air. “Kidd was way ahead of the industry curve in recognizing the true potential of partnering digital content and social interactivity with his huge radio audience reach,” Kelly Kibler, then-Dallas market manager for Clear Channel (now iHeart Media) told the Star-Telegram shortly after Kraddick’s death. “He was investing funds and attention to his web site, and related digital product development, long before the actual benefits of doing so were more commonly understood.”
Before Kraddick’s daughter, Caroline, was born in 1990, doctors told Kraddick and his then-wife, Carol, that their baby could be born with a twisted femur, leaving her unable to walk. Kraddick prayed that she would be born healthy, striking a deal with God that if she was, he would use his radio show to help other kids. Caroline was born healthy. In 1991, he founded Kidd’s Kids, which takes terminally and chronically ill children and their families on a trip to Disney World every year. Caroline Cradick (Kraddick’s real name was David Cradick) is now the executive director of the Kraddick Foundation, which will celebrate the 25th anniversary of Kidd’s Kids with a New Kidd’s Kids on the Block party July 30 at the Empire Room in Dallas.
Steve Harvey, whose The Steve Harvey Morning Show came to DFW in 2003, first on KBFB/97.9 FM “The Beat” and now on KRNB/105.7 FM, was inducted in the “Active Network/Syndication 10+ years” category. Harvey was a standup comedian for more than 15 years before he launched a radio show, and starred in the sitcom The Steve Harvey Show from 1996 to 2002. He also hosts the Steve Harvey afternoon talk show that airs at 2 p.m. weekdays on KXAS/Channel 5. He also has published several books and hosts Family Feud and Celebrity Family Feud, among many other projects.
Harvey’s radio show began in 2000 in Los Angeles, according to his bio. For a time, the then-Dallas resident’s show only aired in L.A. and Dallas, and he would alternate weeks broadcasting from the two cities. The show is now nationally syndicated. Harvey also hosts an annual Mentoring Camp for Young Men in Dallas (Fort Worth has also hosted the event). Its stated goal is “to break the misguided traits of manhood and create a generation of men who are emotionally, socially and economically strong.”
In a 2003 Star-Telegram profile, Harvey said that he wasn’t a radio guy and that he was proud of it. “"I sound like your uncle that comes by your house, " Harvey said. "I don't have this beautiful voice, I didn't go to Columbia School of Broadcasting, I don't have this, you know, 'Welcome, this is KC105! We're hot, new, one!'I got a regular voice, I'm not grammatically correct -- hardly ever -- and I just sound like a real dude that's on the radio, and I have very strong opinions that's very much the opinions of grassroots people."
Weatherford’s Bob Kingsley, best-known as the host of American Country Countdown and the current Bob Kingsley’s Country Top 40, was inducted in the “Music Format On-Air Personality” category. While some categories’ inductees were decided by a panel composed of 400 industry professionals, this category was voted on by the public. (Syndicated host Michael Savage, whose The Savage Nation show airs in DFW on KLIF/570 AM, was inducted in the “Spoken Word On-Air Personality” category, also voted on by the public.)
Kingsley had been nominated in 2010, when his wife, Nan, told the Star-Telegram that many people assumed he was already in the National Radio Hall of Fame, since he was a member of the Country Music DJ Hall of Fame. Not to mention being named CMA's National Broadcast Personality of the Year, his show’s receiving Billboard's Network/Syndicated Program of the Year award 16 times, being voted National Air Personality of the Year three times by Country Radio Broadcasters and Country Aircheck, receiving the ACM’s National Broadcast Personality of the Year Award in 2007 and the 2012 President’s Award by the CRB.
According to Country Aircheck, Kingsley is only the fourth country-radio personality among the 210 inductees in the hall, followed by Blair Garner, Ralph Emery and Gene Autry. Country is also represented by the Grand Ole Opry program.
Kingsley’s bio states he started with American Country Countdown as a producer in 1974, then became its host four years later. In 2006, Kingsley launched Country Top 40, which airs in DFW from 6 to 10 a.m. Sundays on KPLX/99.5 FM “The Wolf.” He serves on the board of directors of the Academy of Country Music, has frequently participated at cutting-horse events in Fort Worth, and is active in supporting miltiary veterans groups and causes. He is also involved in the Wounded Warrior Project, The Palliative Unit of Cook's Children's Hospital in Fort Worth, and St. Jude Hospital.
The induction ceremony will take place Nov. 17 at the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago. For a list of inductees and more info, go here.
This story was originally published July 11, 2016 at 1:39 PM with the headline "Kidd Kraddick to be inducted into radio hall of fame."